![]() They moved their camps with the seasons, spending the summers at Lake Tahoe. They had a basic civilization, gathering roots and pine nuts, fishing and hunting. Native Americansįor thousands of years the area has been home to the western Paiute tribe and the Washoe tribe of Native Americans. Or, in modern history, the excess water is used for civilization. Pyramid Lake is a terminal lake meaning its waters do not go to an ocean but sink into the ground or evaporates. That overflow goes through Washoe (or Pagni) Canyon through Pleasant Valley, Steamboat Valley, Truckee Meadows to it’s intersection with the Truckee River and then to Pyramid Lake. This water overflows to the north into the wildlife refuge and then into Little Washoe Lake. Now, several streams from the Carson Range and a few seasonal streams from the Virginia Range flow into Washoe lake. Evidence of this sand is present along the east shore of Washoe Lake on the beach and the dunes. Over the millennia, this sand has flowed downhill and filled Washoe Valley. Thus the granite “decomposes” over time to form sand. Our granite is composed of several minerals and one, feldspar, dissolves with exposure to the atmosphere. The mountains are principally made up of granite. We have the Carson Range to the west that is a spur of the Sierra Nevadas and the Virginia Range to the east. ![]() ![]() Washoe Valley is at the extreme west of this phenomena. Complex rituals celebrating important stages of the life cycle were also reported.Basin and Range topography showing faults. A shaman, or medicine man or woman, was believed to be able to cause and cure disease. Shamanism was an important part of traditional Washoe life. Goods and services were distributed in various ways: through familial sharing, in gift and ceremonial exchange at feasts for motives of prestige and good relations, and in ritual gift giving at important stages of the life cycle. During winter this group would reside together the able-bodied members migrated each summer into the eastern valleys in search of roots, berries, and small game. ![]() Traditionally, the basic socioeconomic unit of the Washoe was the extended family. They were especially noted for their superb basketry. They depended on deer and antelope for food, for clothing, and for hides to cover their cone-shaped dwellings. Traditionally, the Washoe were fishers, hunters of small mammals, and gatherers of pine nuts, acorns, and various roots and berries. Linguistically isolated from the other Great Basin Indians, they spoke a language of the Hokan language stock. Their peak numerical strength before contact with settlers may have been 1,500. Washoe, North American Indian people of the Great Basin region who made their home around Lake Tahoe in what is now California, U.S.
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